Turkey’s E.U. Bid

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD

For 26 years, Turkey has been angling for membership in the European Union, only to see its bid thwarted. Now, with the union on the verge of reviving talks on Turkey’s accession, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s outrageous crackdown on antigovernment protests in recent weeks is giving some Europeans a new excuse to question whether Turkey merits membership.

Mr. Erdogan has refused to seek political compromise with protesters who opposed a plan to build a shopping mall and a mosque in a park in Taksim Square in Istanbul, and he has directed police to subdue them with tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets. Thousands have been detained, and at least four people have been killed. Mr. Erdogan and other officials have denigrated their critics as terrorists and accused them of planning to topple the government. The leaders have promised to deploy the Army if the police cannot contain the unrest.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/25/opinion/turkeys-eu-bid.html